Black Friday
Black Friday is a never-released animated film commenting on the shopping holiday the day after Thanksgiving. It was intended to be released as part of the Mustache Maniacs Film Co. fifth anniversary, but was cancelled when the workforce was re-focused to work on Johnny Thunder and the Gift of the Nile. Film Details *'Release Date:' n/a *'Running Time:' n/a *'MPAA Rating:' n/a *'Director:' n/a *'Producer:' n/a *'Writer:' Andrew Bermudez Plot Summary The film opens with the Rawlins family - consisting of Leo, Mary, and Tom - camping outside a store called Amenity Warehouse. While they camp and eat leftovers for dinner, a narrator named Dan Soarling narrates what is happening and that they, along with the other campers, are waiting for the store to open the next day. The Rawlins talk a little, then get to sleep. The next day, everyone gets up bright and early and gather in front of the store, but are interrupted by Samantha Redbrick, an aggressive shopper who will not think twice about beating up other shoppers. The store opens, allowing the customers to stampede in. A greeter tells them to have a wonderful day. At the electronics aisle, the crowds force the Rawlins to split up. While Mary and Tom head to different parts of the store, Leo stays behind to get some DVDs. However, a homey holds up an employee and demands Pokemon cards and a PlayStation 3. When he is attacked by a guard, he un-packs a Wii Nerf gun and fires back. Leo stops the homey, but runs off quickly. Another employee that is restocking the PlayStation 3 display is mobbed. In the toys and games department, Mary is looking for an item when she finds out its sold out. However, she is ambushed by Samantha Redbrick, who rips a plastic lightsaber out of its packaging. She confronts Mary, who manages to get away on a display bicycle. Samantha stalks off to the sporting goods department in a bad mood. Tom is looking at an assortment of karate merchandise for a robe when he is informed that the item is sold out. An employee tries to give Tom a baseball bat, but he turns it down. Suddenly, Samantha arrives, forcing the employee to run off screaming. However, as Tom has a black belt in karate, he picks up the baseball bat and confronts Samantha. They fight until Samantha's toy lightsaber breaks, allowing Tom to push Samantha to the ground. He then runs off to the cash register, with Samantha following behind. At the cash register, they meet to lament about their sprint around the store. Leo then holds up the DVDs, but Mary scolds him for buying items that aren't on sale, stating, "It's on sale, so we have to buy it." However, Samantha sneaks up again, but before she can strike anyone, she is arrested by the police. Samantha is taken into custody, the store has to be closed for clean-up, and the Rawlins learn their lesson about putting material goods before family. Production History In the spring of 2009, after both Alpha Team: The Movie and Ghost Pictures had been cancelled, there was a proposition to make a series of short films between the releases of The Adventures of Legoman and Johnny Thunder and the Gift of the Nile. One of these short films was the film Black Friday, which criticized the western cultural norms of materialism for subduing the family message of Thanksgiving. The film was announced on April 30, 2009, along with the other short films. It was planned to be released on Black Friday of 2009, but as development wore on into the summer, it was increasingly criticized for its overly melodramatic dialogue, preach-y ending, and ridiculous concept, since no Black Friday has been this violent since the Cabbage Patch Doll Craze of the early 1990's. This, coupled with the work that needed to be done on Johnny Thunder and the Gift of the Nile, forced the film to be cancelled on July 24, 2009. Characters *Leo Rawlins (Raul Flores) *Mary Rawlins (Teresa Bermudez) *Tom Rawlins (n/a) *Dan Soarling (Daniel Bermudez) *Samantha Redbrick (n/a) *Greeter (n/a) *Employees (n/a) *Shoppers (n/a) Credits *Andrew Bermudez - Writer Trivia *The Leo and Mary that appear in this film are the same Leo and Mary that later appeared in Forest of Fear. *This film was inspired by the Cabbage Patch Doll Craze of the early 1990's. *The scene with the homey wanting a PlayStation 3 is based on a short story written by Daniel Bermudez. Category:Movies Category:Animation Category:Unreleased Category:Non-Canon Category:2009